The Yoga Unicorn

The best stuff to teach always comes from one’s own practice, and in yoga experiential knowledge is considered to be the highest form of knowledge.  This is why I’m so excited to share the techniques in my classes that have so recently come together for me in the last month and a half.

When I spend time with Edward Clark (//Tripsichore.com), without fail, I have a new recognition of how lazy I am in my practice.  I don’t mean that I’m not doing enough chaturangas, I mean that I am not using the resources of my body (muscularly, Pranic energies fueled by the breath, et al) in even the simplest of poses, let alone transitions.  And the truth is that if I am honest about using everything to breathe my way into poses, the simplest poses require more effort than doing the hard stuff without the technique.

The latest epiphany was exerting effort through the back body to stabilize the torso.  This is particularly effective technique for backbends and pressing into inversions, but dramatically impacts stability in everything.  The Tripsichore breathing methodology is profound, and there’s so much to the seemingly simple premise of keeping a long neutral spine through pranayama technique while doing asana.

Edward recently wrote a few words about the muscularity of the breath.  In other words, we should actually be employing muscular effort to deepen the breath in a way that is coalescing and consolidating the body as Prana (fueled by the breath) moves the body through space.  The key is not to “just breathe”, but to use the breath as a vehicle through which Prana is manipulated, and Edward goes on to say,

“Few people seem to realise the muscularity of the breath…there is a great deal of physical effort put into a very precise movement.  Ordinarily, I suppose, we associate this level of effort with large movements…running, jumping…but one of the remarkable things about yoga is the discovery of what happens when you put that much effort into something that seems relatively limited….you know, instead of flailing ones arms or legs around, you put all that effort into moving the middle of your pelvic bowl a relatively small distance.”

To accomplish this involves a sustained level of concentration and effort to put some real depth and breadth of power behind the smallest of movements.  As it turns out, this intensity of focus (dharana) and careful placing of the body through manipulation of Prana (vinyasa) is what yoga is all about.  It’s a very intense process to master this technique, and I can assure you it’s worth it—repeated effort ultimately results in formerly elusive magic that makes everything come together to achieve what you could not do before.  And that, my friends, is better than a Unicorn smelling of fresh baked bread eating sunshine and rainbows.

To read the rest of Edward’s message on the muscularity of yogic breathing click HERE

To come to my classes and learn the “Unicorn Techniques”, there are classes Monday-Thursday 12N and 5:45PM at Seattle Yoga Shala.  Email me at lizdoyle@msn.com and I’ll send you the info.  You can also check out my website HERE: //LizDoyleYoga.com

Riding the mythical beast called Prana,

Liz

Here are the rest of Edwards comments on pranayama:

I suppose it is worth stressing that pranayama and breathing are not really interchangeable terms.  Breath is a mechanism through which prana is manipulated.   Essentially, any model one produces for what is meant by prana would be likely to include in its definition (though perhaps only tacitly)  that it is a way of looking at things that makes them have some kind of coherence.  E.g. the model of kundalini being a serpentine  energy that arises from some point  the base of the spine suggests a place where the movement of energy commences and a path through which it travels.    This possibly lends coherence to the movement  of the body and/or mental processes that happen when this model is used to interpret experience.  Coherence or unity being an alleged aim of yoga…an aim that would include the intentions of a practitioner and the resolution of their actions…could be evaluated then in terms of how well they were able to behave as if they were making prana/kundalini run through their body in a coherent fashion.   Breath would be part of this.

It is odd then that a slow and muscular breath is felt to be a just an optional add-on for most vinyasa practitioners rather than the place that any movement commences.

Few people seem to realise the muscularity of the breath…there is a great deal of physical effort put into a very precise movement.  Ordinarily, I suppose, we associate this level of effort with large movements…running, jumping…but one of the remarkable things about yoga is the discovery of what happens when you put that much effort into something that seems relatively limited….you know, instead of flailing ones arms or legs around, you put all that effort into moving the middle of your pelvic bowl a relatively small distance.

Apropos injury…one of the compelling reasons for the use of a slow breath is that it slows the practitioner down enough to be able to observe when they are getting into perilous territory.  It is hard to breathe slowly and go into a place where you injure yourself.

Mind The Gap

If you’ve ever been to the UK and taken the tube, you’re familiar with the admonition to “mind the gap” (the space between the train and the platform).  I didn’t realize this was probably a personal subliminal message to me for the last two and a half weeks, as even my best friend’s daughter Mathilde kept saying “Mind the Gap!”

For those who’ve been keeping up with my Facebook posts, you know I’ve been in London for the two week inaugural Tripsichore PLUS Practice training course with my teacher, Edward Clark of Tripsichore Yoga.  In summary, I was plagued with various and intense pains and an injury- to read the full first week in review click HERE.  At first it was very difficult to stay in the practice, and I would occasionally stop to skip a pose or two.  Edward encouraged me to stay with the vinyasa of it (the “gap”, if you will), even if I wasn’t doing the poses exactly, and that would allow me to stay with the breath.

So that’s what I did.  But the uber lesson for me came from the intensity of sensation moving through mundane daily tasks.  Now I was suddenly aware of how my arms had to move to do simple things like fold laundry, and now that I’m home, shift gears in my car.  It’s been an abrupt and vivid recognition of how I favor one arm in general, and now that I’m injured, how I have automatically adjusted the asymmetry to favor the other arm, especially in movement.

The physical discomfort required that I intentionally slow down and become mindful of the gap or transition between positions and physical goals.  Moreover, to give more weight to how I move from one thing to the next than the starting and ending point.  There’s an obvious Life metaphor here, and at the risk of being patronizing, can you imagine what it would be like to be this intentional all of the time with everything?  Sometimes Life demands it- through injury, grief and the like, but most times we get to choose our level of Mindfulness to the Gap.  What’s become clear to me is that, especially as a vinyasa practitioner- one who purportedly holds the “Gap” paramount- is that it’s far less important WHAT I’m doing than HOW I do it and how I get from one place to the next.  This applies to EVERYTHING- the practice, physical and mental movements, relationships, my Life’s Path, the list goes on.

Regrettably, it’s caused me to further reflect on how my habitual drive and myopic focus has been a detriment to my experience of Life, and how I’ve missed out on the much more interesting understanding and lessons of the Gap.  In my opinion, this is where all the real yoga takes place, even when it’s not fun.  So, until I see you again, please “Mind the Gap” on the tube and in Life.

In the Gap,

Liz
//LizDoyleYoga.com

P.S. If you’re interested in working with Edward personally, please join us the weekend of October 5-6, 2013 for a weekend of extended practices, workshops and lectures.  Click HERE for more info.

P.P. S.  If you'd like to take class with me, I offer 8 classes per week at Seattle Yoga Shala, and you can get more info HERE

The Yoga of Adversity

A week in review- the Tripsichore Plus Practice Course

It's been a great, though difficult, learning process this last week.  Last week I was surprised to start the week with mysterious and extreme pains that were not present when I left Seattle.

 It was frustrating to  be unable to participate in the practice the way I expected/wanted, but these experiences always give me a greater understanding of my students when they are enduring the same stuff, so I'm grateful for the reminder.

The most difficult thing to do, along with keeping one's spirits up, is to find a way to keep doing the practice.  It's much easier to stop and start from mental perspective, and yet physically and yogically, the right thing to do is to stay with the breath and the practice.

The first week was a real struggle for me physically and as a result, mentally; as fun and exciting learning new things has been, the physical discomfort was demoralizing.  I would be lying if I said I did not think about quitting every day-- and night, since I was kept awake by the pain and a noisy neighborhood!

The additional burden of worrying that I was a disappointment to Edward and Nikki didn't help, but I kept going through the tedious and excruciating work of detailed refinement of Tripsichore breathing and alignment.

Over the weekend I spent a relaxing time with my mom and my best friend in the Cotwolds (English countryside) and didn't practice a lick.

Hesitatingly, I showed up again Monday.  It was the day of my "check-in" meeting, and I confessed my concerns about what Ed and Nikki were thinking, my performance, and my worthiness as a Tripsichore teacher.  They assuaged my worry, but the real message is to just keep practicing, no matter what comes up-- this IS the practice.

The good news is my aches and pains are waning and I'm starting to feel more normal, but those details shall wait until the week 2 review!

What I learned the first week is to above all, be humble.  The hardest work is not always crushing every maneuver, but navigating the way through practice with pain, difficulty and other limitations whilst maintaining attention to the practice of breath, alignment, and mental quiet.  Staying true to the breath practice is paramount, and breath is the best guide.  I also learned that nothing takes the place of persistence, and to just continue, because everything ebbs and flows- the good times and the bad.  I was reminded this morning when I ran across a BKS Iyengar quote:

"Yoga teaches us to cure what need not be endured and endure what cannot be cured."

Enduring and curing,

Liz Doyle

//LizDoyleYoga.com

Take a class with me- next session starts September 9, 2013

Maha Sadhana 

M/W 12N and 5:45P

https://m.facebook.com/events/532039330201285

Yantra Vinyasa 

T/Th 12N

https://m.facebook.com/events/468905803225524

Tripsichore Crash Course

T/Th 5:45P

https://m.facebook.com/events/192641117573949

The Relevance of Vinyasa

 

Edward Clark of Tripsichore Yoga will be in town October 5-6, 2013 for workshops, lectures, and practices (read more details by clicking HERE).
  
One of the lecture/practices is on Vinyasa and it's relevance in the larger context of Yoga and the Practice.  I asked Edward to write a few words about the workshop, and I think you'll find it interesting.  Read on...

 

VINYASA 

Though Vinyasa and "Flow" forms of yoga are among the most popular practices, their lineage and place in yoga orthodoxy are rarely articulated.  This workshop looks at the ways in which the Tripsichore vinyasa practice integrates pranayama and philosophy to make possible the accomplishment of difficult work on the mat. 

 

The concept of vinyasa as applied to yoga philosophy could either be considered very ancient or radically new.  In either case, vinyasa seems to be the great contribution to yoga of this particular generation of yogis.  Most yoga discipline has worked on refining one's self in the direction of greater stillness - an absence of movement in the mind and body.  Superficially, vinyasa would seem to contradict this.  However, the mental focus and physical technique needed to bring about continuous fluid movement can also bring one to a "seat" of great stability and clarity. The stability is not only in the posture, but in the transition between postures - to the point where there is no distinction between movement and stillness.  The place of vinyasa in the history of yoga is yet to be determined, but as yoga has become a worldwide pursuit, it is probably safe to say that its importance now also lies in how people begin to apply it outside the more traditional places it has been practised.  

 

VINYASA, in our definition, is the evenly metered flow of movement, breath and thought resulting in a smooth, uninflected state of being.  The vinyasa techniques are pursued to bring about clarity and stability to one's thoughts and actions.  

 

In seated meditation, there is an inclination to go inward. Looking inwardly has been a major thrust of yogic practice. But one has as many inward distractions as one has outward distractions, so I am a little bit inclined towards harnessing the senses rather than get rid of them. In vinyasa yoga, you don't stop in a posture, you stay in a flow. There isn't a pause of any kind. And so the idea of eka grata is focusing on the flow itself. 

 

 

This makes more sense if the idea is understanding the totality of the universe which must contain within its singularity many things which appear to be contradictory. When we talk about things like cosmic consciousness, it's not just the cosmos of the inner landscape we're talking about, it's the enormity of the universe, and that's not just something that takes place within our own vista locked in the cranial vault. 

 
 ~Edward Clark

Join us October 5th and 6th!
  
See you soon and keep practicing!
Liz
//LizDoyleYoga.com 

The Good Teacher

THE GOOD TEACHER

My friend Ali asked, “What makes a good teacher?”

For me it all starts with sincerity, a teacher who is a yogi in their own right, someone who can teach me something I don’t know, and the application of a high level of intellectual rigor to the practice.

I’ll use Edward Clark, founder of Tripsichore Yoga, as an example.  A few years ago, I completed his one month intensive training, and I’m headed back to London next month to complete his two week “graduate” program.

What initially drew me to Edward was that what he was doing was so uniquely different.  Even the few poses that I was familiar with were done differently.  Though handstands are pretty ubiquitous these days, at the time it was highly unusual and even suspect, to do inversions mid-sequence.  And what’s more, he’d actually thought through the process and had a reason or intention for everything he did—from the choice of vinyasa to whether a particular move was an inhale or exhale—and could articulate it.  Every time Edward came to town, I would consider what and how I was teaching asana and think I should scrap everything and start over.  It was a radical departure from the mainstream.  He was also gut-bustingly funny, and for those of you who know me, you understand how I prioritize humor.

Asking questions, I was worried and hesitating; I wasn’t sure if a question was overstepping my privilege as a student and would be unwelcome.   I was delighted to discover that he is incredibly kind, thoughtful and accessible as a teacher.  In sharp contrast to the other “master” teachers that I had encountered, he welcomed sincere and thoughtful questions and discussion, even when questioning his logic or method.  I remember one instance where I questioned something that seemed contradictory to a previous principle he’d espoused.  Edward’s reply?  “I was hoping you wouldn’t notice that.”  Wow!   

This combination of passion, ingenuity, creativity, intellect, lack of ego around being “right”, and an obvious desire to share his knowledge led me to his training in London.  When I arrived, I was even more pleased to discover his knowledge and study of traditional yogic texts, and learn about the grounding of his methodology in yoga tradition.  And all of this from a guy with no real teacher-- I was flabbergasted.  Before ignoring or disagreeing with the ancient traditional texts in yoga, he actually studied them, and then created his own system based on the teachings.  This system is rather iconoclastic in terms of its pursuit of sainthood or enlightenment via movement.  These yogic pursuits have historically been achieved through the more still practices of seated meditation and inner practices.  No one has ever done it through vinyasa.  Edward readily acknowledges this is an experiment, one that likely won’t bear definitive fruit until after he’s gone, but he has his mandate from the yogic texts, this is what he thinks will do the trick, and he’s committed.  He’s committed his life to what’s possible.  Whether you agree or not, you have to respect that.  Who is that brave?  Who is that intelligent or creative?  Not many of us.  History will tell whether he is an innovative yogic genius, failure, or even more interesting, the guy who “invented” the yogic equivalent of the glue used on post-it notes (an accidental invention by a scientist working on developing a super strong adhesive- characterized as “a solution without a problem”.)

What impresses me most about Edward is how generously he offers his knowledge and experience, and tirelessly teaches everything he knows.  This comes with the expectation that the student will not rest on that knowledge, but take what he has given and do more.  Use that knowledge to advance the practice, as a foundational springboard to something better that can only be given by someone else who has learned, experienced and added to that knowledge.

In a world of participation trophies and short cuts, I appreciate the contrast of a teacher that exemplifies discipline, and a challenging practice that requires it.  Of course, the best teachings are always by example.  Edward not only lives his practice, but has high expectations in terms of work ethic and effort on the part of his students.  He can be incredibly sweet and caring, and it’s wrapped up in greater expectations of the students than we have of ourselves.  Edward has done it, he’s been there, and he’s learned what he knows without a “guru”.  That knowledge is hard-won, and can be respected through effort and a willingness to try, even when success is beyond our grasp.

It’s a blessing to have had incredible teachers who have these qualities, and Edward exemplifies them beautifully.  In gratitude, I will strive my entire life to embody these examples.
For info on Edward's upcoming workshop in Seattle, October 5-6, 2013- click HERE!

Master Teacher Workshop with Edward Clark- Tripsichore Yoga 10/2013

One of my teachers, Edward Clark - founder of Tripsichore Yoga- is coming to town October 5th and 6th for workshops!

 

For those of you who have met Edward, you know how wildly entertaining and intensely interesting his workshops can be.  For avid students, teachers and anyone interested in smart discourse on yoga philosophy, technique and the meaning of life, this is a highly anticipated weekend--sure to be the talk of the Seattle Yoga Scene for months to come.

 

Especially if you have been studying Tripsichore with me for the last six months, this is your chance to ask the questions and get answers straight from the source!  No one delivers like Edward.

 

Here're the details:

 

Hours 8:30am to 4:30pm at Skinner Auditorium, 1245 10th Ave. East, Seattle, WA 98102, on Capital Hill, next door to St. Mark's Cathedral.

Saturday October 5, 2013:
8:30-9:30am: Introduction/Philosophy of Vinyasa

9:30-11:30am: Practice
11:30-12:30pm: Break
12:30-1:30pm: Bhagavad Gita: Karma, Bhakti and Jnana Yoga

1:30-2:00pm: Break
2-4:30pm: Workshop on Backbending

Sunday October 6, 2013:

8:30-9:30am: Reflection on Yoga in the modern world

9:30-11:30am: Practice
11:30-12:30pm: Break
12:30-1:30pm: Sequencing and methodology of vinyasa

1:30-2:00pm: Break
2-4:30pm: Workshop on Arm Balances and Inversions

  

Pricing:

Full weekend: $275

Early Bird paid on or before August 5, 2013: $225

Drop-in rate per session: $50

  

Registration:

email: lizdoyle@msn.com

call: 206.660.2321

  

Payment methods:

cash

check (payable to Sattva Yoga)

PayPal (please cover the PayPal fees)

  

If you want more than the standard yoga fare, this is just what the doctor ordered.  See you there, and feel free to contact me anytime with questions or for registration. 

  

Love,

Liz

//LizDoyleYoga.com

206.660.2321

The Yoga of Injury, Ageing, and Limitations

One of my students recently asked me what I meant when I said that we use yoga asana (the physical postures) to teach us that we are more than our bodies.

I've heard it put best by master teachers like Edward Clark and David Swenson, and I paraphrase-- If yoga (asana) was about achievement in the poses, we'd be looking to gymnasts, acrobats and Cirque du Soleil perfomers for the secrets of Enlightenment. This is not to diminish their accomplishment, it's that there's something unique about yoga asana that makes it more than contortionism; and even if we've never thought specifically about it, on some level we know that.

Perhaps it's not until we've reached "a certain age" or had an injury-- minor or debilitating, temporary or permanent-- that we recognize we are something more than our physical body. It doesn't make it any easier to "gracefully surrender the things of youth" (Desiderata), but it does underscore the value of our practice beyond the physical.

The question then is- why do the physical poses at all? Beyond taking care of our "temple", it's a vehicle through which we can understand and learn about everything around us. The practice room is like a laboratory, and we "experiment", putting our body through the paces, creating situations that create stress, intensity, discomfort, in a safe and controlled environment. We do this and learn about ourselves, train ourselves on many levels-- physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual-- so we can grow.

I ran across a poem by Theodore Roethke called Infirmity that I think illustrates the temporal nature of the body and our attachment to it, the play of the senses, and That within us that is always the same. We might call it "Spirit" or the "Soul", but it's this eternal Inner Light of Awareness that we seek to uncover in yoga, and better yet, allow to inform all of our thoughts, words and actions-- even while obscured by this body we inhabit.

INFIRMITY by Theodore Roethke

In purest song one plays the constant fool
As changes shimmer in the inner eye.
I stare and stare into a deepening pool
And tell myself my image cannot die.
I love myself: that's my one constancy.
Oh, to be something else, yet still to be!

Sweet Christ, rejoice in my infirmity;
There's little left I care to call my own.
Today they drained the fluid from a knee
And pumped a shoulder full of cortisone;
Thus I conform to my divinity
By dying inward, like an aging tree.

The instant ages on the living eye;
Light on its rounds, a pure extreme of light
Breaks on me as my meager flesh breaks down-
The soul delights in that extremity.
Blessed the meek; they shall inherit wrath;
I'm son and father of my only death.

A mind too active is no mind at all;
The deep eye sees the shimmer on the stone;
The eternal seeks, and finds, the temporal,
The change from dark to light of the slow moon,
Dead to myself, and all I hold most dear,
I move beyond the reach of wind and fire.

Deep in the greens of summer sing the lives
I've come to love. A vireo whets its bill.
The great day balances upon the leaves;
My ears still hear the bird when all is still;
My soul is still my soul, and still the Son,
And knowing this, I am not yet undone.

Things without hands take hands: there is no choice,-
Eternity's not easily come by.
When opposites come suddenly in place,
I teach my eyes to hear, my ears to see
How body from spirit slowly does unwind
Until we are pure spirit at the end.

See you soon and keep practicing!
Liz
//LizDoyleYoga.com

200 Hour Teachers Training: A Rose By The Same Name May Not Smell As Sweet.

My dear friend, Ali Valdez, and I lead annual teachers trainings, and our next 200 hour starts in April.  There is still a few days to make the early registration cut off, and I thought it might be useful to hear from Ali on the topic of the ubiquitous nature of 200 hour programs and why we think ours is the choice for yogis who are serious about the practice and teaching.

Here's what Ali has to say...

Teacher Training 2013 is coming up rapidly. As teachers who teach throughout Seattle and the Eastside, as well as conduct workshops all over the country, it is incredible to see how many studios offer "teacher trainings." In fact, which one doesn't?

But what is a teacher training and the philosophy behind creating a great teacher and creating a great yogi?

A great yogi has to have the discipline to do the daily practice. Period. No excuses. But a great yoga teacher should hold themselves to the same standards. It does not make sense to aspire to be a teacher of yoga, and not actually do yoga. If you were a college professor in a topic such as English Literature, but never felt like reading, nor enjoyed literary criticism or analysis, over time, the law of diminishing returns sets in. The quality of the teaching will disintegrate because what you are delivering to your students ceases to be a gift from the heart, developed and nurtured within, but more like a product, one of thousands available on a shelf.

A great yogi by design, per Hatha Yoga Pradipika, is not necessarily inclined to 'reach out' and be connecting with the world. A great yoga teacher, however, has no choice. The desire to teach requires some level of accessibility, vulnerability and servitude. How does one teach those skills adequately?

One thing that I love about yoga is the eight limbs: all of them. They provide a true life long path for spiritual growth and self realization. They are the backbone also on how and what to teach. The cornerstone of a solid practice transcends merely the physical aspects; after all, we are profound and lovely spiritual beings. The path is not straight, very long, and often times cluttered by the weeds of vritti (fluctuation of the mind) and klesha (afflictions or sufferings), but it is a glorious path nonetheless. Having spent some time entrenching oneself into the signature of each of the limbs brings dimension and richness to the overall development of your being. Teaching from that place can pack an inspirational punch.

The spectrum of eight limbs is not for everybody coming into a teacher training, day one, all at one time. The connection between student and the teacher should be one that can layer themes, build on ideas gradually then play them out in one's own life and yoga practice. Working with their teacher who faciliates showing how all the factors are woven together, and should withstand the test of time, especially a time so fleeting as 200 hours.

It is my hope that together we can mindfully create a community of great yogi yoga teachers, and through our experiences do our best to truly walk the walk and bring the fruits of our journey to the program.

It is my hope you will join us and the different yoga studios that will be participating this year, to experience the essence of the heart of yoga in a complete way, offering up the right tools in the right way for your development, inspired yogi, or aspiring yogi yoga teacher.

There is only one two hundred hour program available this year in Washington state, and it starts April 12th. Early registration ends February 1st.

More information can be found at www.sattvayogaonline.com/teacher-training/power-vinyasa or info@sattvayogaonline.com. 

(You can check out our Kids' Teachers Training here: http://sattvayogaonline.com/teacher-training/kids-yoga/)